Expert tips from the Asia-Pacific International Functional Water Cooperation Organization expert committee member:

■In order to maintain a normal and healthy metabolism, Chinese adults should supplement an average of about 2 liters of water per day, which is about 7 ~8 glasses of water (this includes fluids from your diet). You should develop the habit of drinking water regularly. Don't wait until you are thirsty to drink water, because your body will already be dehydrated by this time.

■Be careful about the time and method of drinking water. Drink 1 to 2 glasses of water every morning, noon and evening. Drink slowly and taste it carefully, and you will feel a slight sweetness from it. , and the urine is long and clear, the stool is moist, and the spirit is refreshing.

We often say that people can go without eating for three days, but they cannot go without drinking water for one day. If you usually have a headache or fever and go to the hospital for treatment, the doctor will not only ask you to take medicine on time, but also tell you to have a good rest and drink more water. This is not only because drugs can only be absorbed by the human body when dissolved in water, but also because water itself has the effects of calming, clearing away heat, and detoxifying. Lu You, a poet from the Song Dynasty in my country, lived for more than 80 years in a rough and wandering life. He once wrote a poem: "Nine-turn elixirs are too many things. Drinking water can chase the gods." In his opinion, drinking water is better than refining elixirs for a healthy and long life.

From the perspective of drinking water and health, mainstream scientists currently believe that good drinking water should meet the following requirements:

1. It should be clean and free of disease-causing chemicals. bacteria, heavy metals and harmful chemicals.

2. It should contain appropriate amounts of minerals and trace elements.

3. It should contain fresh and appropriate amount of dissolved oxygen.

4. It should be alkaline, with small molecular groups and strong activity.

Currently, drinking water on the market can be roughly divided into three categories: 1. Pure drinking water. 2. Healthy drinking water. 3. Functional drinking water.

Purified drinking water: very clean, especially suitable for mixing wine, seasoning, and drinking. In areas with poor water sources and quality, drinking pure drinking water may be a better choice. We just don’t encourage children and the elderly to simply drink pure water.

Healthy drinking water: Mineral water that meets the standards is good. In addition, tap water that has been deeply processed (such as precision filtration, activated carbon adsorption, ultraviolet sterilization, etc.) and purified water that has been mineralized and activated are also acceptable. It’s called healthy drinking water.

Functional drinking water: It is a relatively new type of drinking water. It requires the water to be clean and then undergo physical treatment to make the water molecule clusters smaller, the pH to be alkaline, and the oxidation and reduction of water to be reduced. The potential decreases, even to a negative potential. Functional drinking water has the effects of anti-fatigue, antioxidant and regulating blood lipids. What is commendable is that these health care effects are produced without the addition of additives (drugs and nutrients). In addition to being used as general drinking water, it is more suitable for middle-aged and elderly people and target groups (such as those with busy work, excessive stress, and excessive nutrition).

1 Experts teach you how to distinguish the "physical quality" of drinking water

●Pure water: drinking water that has passed through a membrane separation filtration device. On the one hand, it filters out harmful substances in the water; On the one hand, it also filters out minerals and trace elements that are beneficial to the human body.

●Water purification: Drinking water filtered by activated carbon, etc., while filtering harmful substances, will retain minerals and other beneficial elements. However, the filter element must be kept clean and replaced regularly to ensure the quality of the water. "Physique" is stable.

●Mineral water: Drinking water collected from groundwater flowing through rocks deep underground and treated to a certain extent. It contains certain minerals and trace elements as a distinctive feature, and is beneficial to the metabolism of the human body.

Distinguish the quality of mineral water: The ion content in the water is printed on the trademark. Generally, the combination with high calcium and low sodium is the top grade. In addition, the content of trace elements such as magnesium, potassium, and sulfate is also marked as the best. .

●Mineral water: Mineral drinks are not mineral water. Minerals are added artificially. The ratio is difficult and the nutritional value is not satisfactory.

●Mountain spring water: Mountain spring water is not mineral water, because the country does not have relevant standards, and the "physical condition" is not stable

●Oxygen-enriched water: Oxygen-enriched water is artificially oxygenated , the dissolved oxygen in water has a degree of saturation, and more is not always better.

●Distilled water: After the water is boiled to a boiling point of 100 degrees Celsius, while being sterilized at high temperature, some harmful substances with a boiling point less than 100 degrees Celsius will remain, such as carbon tetrachloride with a boiling point of 70 degrees Celsius. Filter out.

“Safety is not the only criterion. People should pay more attention to whether it is beneficial to human health when choosing long-term drinking water.” Niu Xiaoying, executive director of the Healthy Drinking Water Professional Committee of the China Medical Promotion Association, believes that “it does not contain Pure water containing harmful substances is very clean. Although it is safe to drink, long-term drinking is not beneficial to the human body." What is more important to judge whether the "physical constitution" of water is healthy or not is whether the hardness of the water is weakly alkaline, the content of macroelements and trace elements, and the size of water molecules.

Although experts agree that mineral water is the best drinking water, there are many questions surrounding mineral water. Such as "Why does mineral water have a strange smell", "Why does tea made with mineral water turn red"... Faced with many questions, Professor Zhu Huigang of the School of Public Health at Fudan University explained that mineral springs collected from different water sources Water “constitution” also differs.

The current mineral water standards formulated by the state only restrict the access of mineral water production enterprises, and do not provide a more detailed evaluation of the "physical quality" of different underground water sources. For example, in Japan, in addition to national standards, mineral water also has two indicators of deliciousness and health, which are used to provide consumers with different tastes with convenience in purchasing. For example, some mineral waters have a mediocre health index but a high taste index, while others have an extremely high health index and just pass the taste index. This may be helpful in guiding consumers to drink.

1 Experts proposed seven standards for healthy drinking water

In the first Tianjin Science and Technology Academic Exchange Month event in September 2003, relevant experts proposed seven standards for healthy drinking water.

※Does not contain toxic, harmful or odorous substances;

※The hardness is moderate;

※The mineral content required by the human body is moderate;

※The pH value is slightly alkaline;

※The content of dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide in the water is moderate;

※The water molecules are small;

※Water The physiological function is strong.

Expert Tips

☆It is best for adults to drink water no less than 6 times a day.

☆Children and teenagers should drink about 1000ml of water every day.

☆Don’t make it too hot when drinking fresh boiled water, generally 25 degrees Celsius to 30 degrees Celsius is appropriate.

☆When you have a fever, drinking more boiled water can improve resistance, eliminate sweating, and urinate more. In addition to lowering body temperature, it can also eliminate toxic substances in the blood, so drinking water scientifically will benefit people endlessly.

1 How can drinking water be considered “scientific”?

Although everyone knows how to drink water, how can drinking water be considered "scientific"?

Drinking water plays an important role in the "healthy diet". The amount, time and method of drinking water every day are "scientifically" arranged according to the physiological requirements of the human body. This has a great relationship with human health.

People usually drink water based on whether they are thirsty, which is unreasonable. Because thirst means that the body's water balance has been lost. It means that the human cells have been dehydrated to a certain extent, and the central nervous system sends a signal to replenish water. Drinking water only when you are thirsty is equivalent to irrigating only when the soil is cracked, which is not conducive to the growth of plants.

It is advisable to drink water on an empty stomach before meals

The average daily water consumption of the human body (through the respiratory tract, defecation, skin, etc.) is about 2500 ml. In addition to the 300 ml of oxidized water produced by the metabolism of substances in the body, In addition to 2,200 milliliters, at least 2,200 milliliters should be added to the diet every day to achieve balance.

How should this 2200 ml of water be scientifically added to the human body?

To put it simply: drink water on an empty stomach before meals, and have soup and water with meals.

Drinking water on an empty stomach before meals means that you should drink a certain amount of water about one hour before breakfast, lunch and dinner. Because the digestion of food is completed by the digestive juices of the digestive organs. The total amount of digestive juices (saliva, gastric juice, bile, pancreatic juice, intestinal juice) secreted every day is about 8000 ml.

Drink water on an empty stomach before meals. The water only stays in the stomach for 2 to 3 minutes, and then quickly enters the small intestine and is absorbed into the blood. It can be replenished to tissue cells throughout the body in about an hour to supply the body's need for water.

Therefore, drinking water before meals can ensure the secretion of necessary and sufficient digestive juices to promote appetite and help digestion and absorption, without affecting the physiological water content in tissue cells.

For this reason, it is important to replenish water before meals. Especially before breakfast, because after sleeping all night for a long time, the human body loses more water. It is very important to drink more water when you wake up in the morning.

It is advisable to drink warm water on an empty stomach.

It is advisable to drink warm water on an empty stomach. You can also use light drinks such as juice, light tea, vegetable juice, etc. Nutritional supplements such as milk, soy milk, and eggs should not be consumed on an empty stomach, but should be taken with or after a meal. In hot weather and excessive sweating, you should increase the amount of water you drink; after sweating a lot, you should add some very light salt water.

Drink soup with meals to help dissolve food

Strong tea and salt water cannot replace drinking water on an empty stomach, because strong tea has a diuretic effect, affects the body's water balance, and can cause cell dehydration. Salt is sodium chloride. Since the sodium content in cells is very low, when we drink salt water, the salt water can enter the blood and tissues, but cannot enter the cells. If it is too concentrated, it will cause cell dehydration, which is not good for the human body.

On the other hand, why should there be soup and water when eating?

Because drinking a certain amount of soup during meals can help dissolve food, so that during gastric peristalsis, the food and gastric juice can be stirred for preliminary digestion, and more water can be supplied to facilitate food. Digestion and absorption in the small intestine.

If you do not replenish an appropriate amount of water before and during meals, body fluids will be lost when gastric juice is secreted in large quantities after meals, which will inevitably cause thirst. Drinking water at this time will dilute gastric juice and affect digestion. Drinking too much water will also increase the burden on the heart and kidneys.

1 Children and Water

Children should not drink purified water for a long time

With water dispensers and purified water, drinking water seems to have become much more convenient, but most What people don’t expect is that what we drink is actually a kind of water with no nutrients and degraded functions. Drinking too much pure water is very harmful to children and adolescents.

Professor Li Fuxing, an expert in water nutrition, said that while purified water removes harmful substances in the water during the production process, it also filters out trace elements in the water. He pointed out that 30% of the calcium requirement for children comes from water. If they drink pure water for a long time, the source of this part of calcium will be gone. In addition, calcium in food is absorbed more slowly than calcium in water and is much lower. If children drink such water for a long time, not only will they not be able to supplement trace elements such as calcium and zinc, but the existing minerals in the body will be absorbed and excreted by the pure water.

Not long ago, the China Consumers Association officially issued a consumer warning that children and the elderly should not drink purified water for a long time. Consumers are also reminded that once sealed barrels of purified water are unsealed and exposed to air, bacteria will begin to grow within 24 hours. Therefore, drinking a bucket of pure water for several weeks is not advisable. ("Beijing Times" on October 27, 2003)

Plain water is the first choice for children's drinks

When various beverages flood the counters of major shopping malls, some experts at home and abroad also use their great Interested in studying the activity of warm boiled water. Studies have shown that warm boiled water can increase the activity of lactate dehydrogenase in organs and help quickly reduce the "fatigue hormone" lactic acid accumulated in muscles, thereby eliminating fatigue and rejuvenating the spirit. The physiological functions of water on the human body mainly include four aspects:

1. The movement of nutrients and metabolites in human tissues and cells in the body requires water as a carrier.

2． Water can regulate body temperature so that the body temperature does not fluctuate too much.

3. Water is the lubricant for friction between human tissues.

4． Water has extremely strong solubility. Various inorganic and organic substances are easily soluble in water. Metabolic wastes in the body are easily removed from the body under the action of water.

Therefore, experts emphasize that boiled water is the first choice for children’s drinks.

Children have a lot of diarrhea, and fruit juice is to blame

In the pediatric care clinic, people ranging from babies a few months old to primary school students in their teens come to see people with diarrhea. The mother of a 4-year-old boy told the doctor that the child had diarrhea for almost a week, had a loss of appetite, had lost weight, and no medicine was effective. After questioning, the doctor learned that the child usually drank juice like water, at least two or three bottles a day. After suffering from diarrhea and illness, he did not want to eat, but he did not stop drinking juice. During the diagnosis, parents were full of doubts. They thought that drinking fruit juice would help their children get more vitamin C, but they never thought that fruit juice would become an accomplice to diarrhea?

The doctor explained that most parents today mistakenly believe that fruit drinks are nutritious, which is actually unscientific. Fruit juice drinks contain a variety of vitamins and sugars. Drinking them in moderation can replenish vitamins and inorganic salts in the body. However, for children whose digestive systems are not yet sound, drinking too much fruit drinks can cause diseases. Fruit juice drinks are hypertonic liquids. First of all, they cannot quench thirst. The more you drink, the thirstier you become. Secondly, the main organic component of fruit juice drinks is sugar. Excessive sugar intake will disrupt the child’s digestion and absorption function, suppress appetite, and affect the absorption of nutrients such as protein. Once a child develops the habit of drinking juice, it will lead to malnutrition and hinder normal growth and development. At the same time, a large amount of sugar in fruit juice cannot be absorbed and utilized by the human body, causing diarrhea. When sugar is eliminated from the kidneys, it will change the urine and increase the urine sugar level. Over time, it will also cause kidney disease.

Pediatric experts believe that it is better for children to drink boiled water to replenish water. If you drink juice, it is best for parents to squeeze some pure fresh juice for their children to drink.

1 The elderly and water

Drinking water in the middle of the night can prevent diseases

Medical researchers once conducted a group study on the elderly. One group got up in the middle of the night and drank 250 ml of boiled water. The other group slept until dawn, and then had their blood levels measured separately in the early morning. It was found that the blood concentration of the people in the drinking water group was significantly reduced.

Cerebral thrombosis is mostly discovered when getting up in the morning, and the sudden onset time is usually in the middle of the night. Due to physiological aging and other factors, most elderly people have varying degrees of cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, and their blood viscosity is also higher. Lack of water at night will increase blood viscosity and platelet cohesion, making the original atherosclerotic blood vessels more susceptible to embolism. When the embolus falls off in the cerebral arteries, coronary arteries and their branches, ischemic stroke or myocardial infarction will occur. infarction.

Elderly people should drink more water to prevent skin aging

When people reach middle-aged and old age, the water content in their cells will be reduced by 30 to 40% compared to young people. Because of this, Most middle-aged and elderly people will have wrinkles on their skin. If water cannot be fully replenished, not only will the skin wrinkles become serious, it will also affect normal urination!

According to foreign research reports, people are accustomed to drinking water only when they are thirsty. However, in middle age, the feeling of thirst will become less and less obvious with age; the elderly often lack water when they are obviously Therefore, especially when the temperature rises suddenly or a heat wave strikes, heat stroke or other accidents are particularly common, and there are even cases of "heat death". Therefore, it is best for middle-aged people to advocate the concept of drinking water at any time, while the elderly should develop the habit of drinking an appropriate amount of water even if they are not thirsty.

In fact, there are many ways to replenish water. Many nutritionists suggest that you can make vegetable and fruit soup, drink tea (strong tea is not suitable), cold water, etc. It is particularly important to note that if you drink a glass of cold water first after getting up in the morning, it will be very helpful to the body; because after a night's sleep, the human body consumes a lot of water through sweating, urination and breathing, and the blood becomes thicker and the blood vessel cavity becomes thicker. It is also narrowed due to reduced blood flow, which may easily lead to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular embolism and other accidents. Therefore, correct replenishment of water can not only reduce blood consistency and promote blood vessel dilation, but also have the function of cleaning the gastrointestinal tract, thus helping digestion and preventing constipation.

As for the amount of water you drink, it depends on your personal situation. It is best to drink small amounts and often. The more hygienic choice should be to drink cold boiled water, salt boiled water, tea or fresh mineral water.

Of course, you should not drink too much water each time to avoid increasing the burden on the heart and kidneys; secondly, like ordinary people, middle-aged and elderly people should not drink too much after working or exercising, although they sweat a lot.

The elderly should drink some water even if they are not thirsty.

For the elderly after reaching their 60s, the water content in their bodies will gradually decrease with age, leading to chronic dehydration. For example, if the water content of skin cells is reduced, the subcutaneous tissue and elastic tissue will be reduced, the secretion of water by sebaceous glands will be reduced, the skin will become dry, and wrinkles will increase. Insufficient water will also affect the secretion of saliva, bile, and gastric juice. As a result, the elderly will feel listless and have digestive problems. Dysfunction, constipation, etc. Therefore, in order to live a healthy and long life, the elderly should develop the habit of drinking some water every day even if they are not thirsty. 1000 to 1500 ml per day is appropriate. Drinking it half an hour before three meals a day can increase appetite and is also beneficial to the general health of the elderly. Generally speaking, in winter and spring, the climate is cold and dry, and the elderly are prone to colds and fever, which can lead to dehydration in the body. In addition, the amount of water consumed in winter decreases, and the elderly are prone to dehydration in the body in winter and spring. In summer and autumn, people sweat more. If water cannot be replenished in time, it can easily cause dehydration of the body. In addition, diarrhea may be caused by eating unclean food at any time of the year, which may also cause serious water shortage in the elderly, so be careful to drink more water when you have diarrhea.

The best time for the elderly to drink water

Before going to bed

According to expert research, if the elderly do not drink water before going to bed at night, it can lead to plasma concentration and blood viscosity. Increased blood pressure and platelet aggregation ability can promote thrombosis in the body. For the elderly or people suffering from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular ischemic diseases, drinking a glass of water before going to bed at night can prevent fatal infarction. Many elderly people are not used to drinking water before going to bed and are afraid of getting up at night to urinate. In fact, the elderly have bladder atrophy and reduced capacity, so they still have to get up to urinate even if they don't drink water.

Midnight

Old people urinate more at night due to reduced kidney systolic function, which leads to lack of water in the body, easily makes blood flow thicker, increases resistance to heart and brain blood flow, and easily Cause cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. For the elderly with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, due to changes in the intima of blood vessels and high blood viscosity, they are prone to ischemic stroke. Lack of water at night increases this risk. Therefore, drinking water in the middle of the night is very important.

After getting up

When the elderly sleep at night, due to urination, sweating, and breathing, the body is relatively dehydrated, resulting in blood concentration, slow blood flow, and accumulation of body metabolites. Drinking a glass of water after getting up can promote normal blood circulation and prevent high blood pressure, cerebral thrombosis, myocardial infarction and other diseases. It is more beneficial to run after drinking water. Water can keep the gastrointestinal tract clean, help detoxify the liver, improve kidney and endocrine functions, improve immune function, and prevent colds, pharyngitis, arthritis and certain skin diseases.

1 Women and Water

Drinking water can help you lose weight

Water helps burn calories. The simplest way to lose weight is to drink 8 cups of water a day.

Can drinking water help you lose weight? Many people worry about the numbers of food calories, calories and weight every day. However, German scientists have discovered what may be the simplest way to lose weight. Drinking 2 liters of water a day can help burn calories and achieve weight loss.

However, nutritionists are cautious about this "new" discovery and emphasize that you should also pay attention to balanced nutrition when losing weight. Drinking 2 liters of water a day is indeed a healthy way to help the body's metabolism.

A study by Charite University in Berlin, Germany, found that people who followed health recommendations and drank 2 liters of water per day (based on about 250 ml per cup of water, or about 8 cups) could drink 2 liters of water per day. Burn an extra 150 calories. Professor Michael Boschmann, who led the study, said water can stimulate sympathetic nerves to regulate metabolism, improve the body's metabolic efficiency, and achieve the effect of burning more calories.

The above study was published in the latest issue of "Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism", but the researchers emphasized that only drinking water can have the effect of consuming additional calories, while drinking sparkling water and other beverages will only Has the opposite effect.

Elizabeth Wong, a registered dietitian at St. James' Settlement in Hong Kong, pointed out that since water has zero calories, drinking water will definitely not make you obese.

However, Huang Qiwen emphasized that although water has zero calories, it is not encouraged to lose weight by drinking only water because it will affect physiological functions and disrupt metabolism. (Worker Daily Tianxun Online)

A woman made of water Q&A

Water is not omnipotent, but nothing is impossible without water. Smooth skin is the highest index of beauty in the cold and dry season. How much beauty effect can moisture exert? Are external hydration products more effective than drinking water? Are those skin problems that drinking water can solve? We have the answer for you -

People who drink more water have smoother skin than those who drink less water, so drinking water can make dry skin smoother! Wrong: Dry skin in winter is caused by the loss of moisture and oil on the skin surface at the same time. To effectively solve the dryness, you need to apply moisturizing lotion in time. Just drinking water won't solve the problem.

You sweat less in winter, so you don’t consume too much water. You don’t need to drink 8 cups of water every day? Wrong We burn about 2,000 calories a day, and for every 15 calories burned, we need to lose a spoonful of water. 8 glasses of water a day just replenishes the daily loss. Moreover, drinking water can take away waste and toxins from the body. People who drink enough water are less likely to suffer from skin problems than those who drink less water. Therefore, drinking water should not be reduced in winter. You sweat a lot in summer, so it’s necessary to consciously increase your drinking water